"Queen and Slim" creators on being black in America

Brut America

"What are you most afraid of?" "The police." Brut spoke with @QueenAndSlim screenwriter Lena Waithe and director Melina Matsoukas about being black in America.

Transcript

00:00Talk about your nephew.

00:01Oh, yeah. My nephew, who is eight years old, he surprised, like,

00:06what are you most afraid of? He said the police. And I think to be a young black boy, I think I

00:12shouldn't be surprised by that, actually, because you can't shield him from news or sort of social

00:17media. And I think that was really eye-opening for me. I know I'm afraid of them. But it just

00:23makes so much sense, because the truth is, even when you watch civil rights footage,

00:27people beating up the young college students who are protesting are police officers.

00:32When they're supposed to be protecting you.

00:33Exactly.

00:33When they're attacking you.

00:34Yeah. And then obviously, now the images we have of police officers and black people

00:38is beyond water hoses and dogs. Now it's just, you know, being killed. So I think I understand why

00:46I have a panic attack when I get pulled over. I think most black people do,

00:50because we don't feel like we're necessarily being protected or served by the police.

00:55I agree.

01:25In the movie, Slim asks, why do black people always feel the need to be excellent?

01:32Do you feel that pressure yourself?

01:33Of course. You know, I don't think we would be here if we weren't excellent. And I think

01:38this is something that just comes with the dinner of being black, because we don't have true equality

01:43yet. But I think that that's, you know, look, I think it's a harsh truth that we both have to

01:48face. But I think we both accept the challenge.

01:50I was brought up that in a way that we're all created equal and we need to fight for each

01:55other's rights, not just our own. That we have to use the privilege we've been given

02:00to give other people that opportunity. And so it gave me purpose, you know, and it gave me this

02:06need to want to create change, to want to dismantle, to want to disrupt, to want to

02:11challenge. I just had to figure out what was going to be my weapon of choice. And then I

02:16found filmmaking. And I was like, this is a way for me to like, change the world. You know,

02:21I can reach everybody. I can change minds. I can make people think I can affect change

02:27that hopefully motivates other forms of activism.

02:31What kind of responsibilities do you think you have when it comes to your art as a black woman?

02:37I feel like I have a responsibility to reflect the times, to be honest to how we live.

02:42I don't really like to make people comfortable or create a space where people

02:49don't need to change. You know, I think that comfort breeds complacency and I like to motivate people

02:56and make them uncomfortable where they're questioning why. And so I feel like, you know,

03:03there's a need for me to reflect the times in which we live, to critique the society in which

03:07we live, because it's not created equal. And there's a lot of dismantling and disruption

03:12that needs to happen. And I need to be a part of that.

03:14Yeah, I agree.

03:15And you, what would be your answer to that same question?

03:18My responsibility? To tell the truth, you know, to be a truth teller and to not be afraid

03:26and to not make art that allows our community to be passive.

03:31Because, you know, we have to be the revolution that we dream about.

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